Of Fae And Fire [#Wattys2016] √

(|] 1: encounter [|)

I get my fake ID ready. My friend Marissa had it made for me a year ago, but I was too afraid to use it. Now that she's gone, all the way in Australia, I use it all the time to compensate for the empty space she left me in.

Once I get to the front of the line, I hold out my ID, keeping a solid face and looking straight ahead. A lot of makeup and certain clothes succeed in making me look older, and the man hands me back my ID. "You're good." I step into the bar and look around.

There are people milling about; some drunk and some sober. Groups of friends laughing and falling over each other, couples making out, the usual. And, also as usual, I'm alone.

I sit on a plush red barstool and spin it around once. I sometimes come here for the shows (sometimes bands perform here), but it's days like these, when my parents are fighting, that I slip out to town for a break. And what better place for a break?

The man on the other side of the bar asks what I want, but I wave my hand toward the shelves and counter behind him. "Anything." He pours me a glass and I take a sip. The bitter, metallic taste of alcohol burns the back of my throat and makes my eyes water, but I down the glass in about three sips.

"You like?" he asks. I nod, shoving the glass back in his direction. He fills it again, and I take another sip, leaning with my elbows against the bar.

After three more glasses, I stand up, wobbling slightly. I don't think it's the high heels this time. The people around me become a blur, and the constant voices blend together and seem like mumbling. But then someone comes out of the blur, toward me. He has long, neat platinum-blond hair and huge grey eyes with silver swirls that tumble around. He bends and kisses my hand, his lips soft against my skin. "Farland. A pleasure."

He's so darn hot I don't know what to say, so I blurt out, "Is that your first name or your last name?" An amused smile plays across his lips, but he doesn't respond.

"And what are you called?" Farland asks.

"Meree."

He raises an eyebrow. "Marie?"

I shake my head. "M-E-R-E-E. Pronounced with more of an er then an ar." He actually smiles this time, and it's the most amazing thing I've ever seen, turning his grey eyes fully sliver. It may just be the alcohol kicking in, but it still makes me step back in shock. His eyes actually did just change color.

"Well, Meree, I thi-" Farland starts to say, when two security guards come storming over.

"Hey! You! Let me see your ID!" one of them yells angrily, holding out his hand. I nervously place my card in the center of his palm and take a deep breath. "So your name is Nora Williams?" I nod, sending a sideways glance at Farland. He raises his eyebrows questioningly, but I turn my gaze back to the guards.

"And you're twenty two years old?" I nod again, standing ramrod straight now. He raises up his dark sunglasses and peers closely at me. He narrows his eyes and turns to the other guard. "This young woman is lying. She's still a teenager, no more than seventeen!" I gulp, bracing myself. He glares at me again. "I am confiscating this fake ID. Get out!" Before he has to grab me and throw me out, I scurry away form the bar onto the sidewalk. The sky is getting darker, and I'll have to call a taxi to take me home. Even though I'm sixteen, my parents don't like me outside by myself at night.

Before I can hail a cab, a guy steps out of the bar. I recognize him as Farland, and he approaches me quickly. "Do you need help getting home?"

"My parents don't like it when I'm out by myself once it's dark," I explain. He fills in the blanks.

"Would you like me to walk you home?" My stomach lodges in my throat, and all I can do is nod. I start on the way back to my house and he soon is pacing beside me.

"So do you live around here?" I ask, trying to make conversation with him. "I've never seen you before."

He pauses for a bit before answering. "I live...around here." He doesn't elaborate, and I don't push it. "How far away do you live?"

"It's about a five minute walk. Not very far." We're silent for a while, and crickets start to chirp as if to fill in for the absence of sound. Gravel crunches under our shoes. "Um...yeah." I have no idea what to say. He's still a stranger, and now that I think about it, it's a little odd that he came over to me in a crowd of people even though he doesn't know anything about me, and now has offered to walk me home. Maybe I shouldn't have accepted. Maybe he's a kidnapper. But as I look at his face, into his eyes, I can tell that he's not.

We turn into my neighborhood, and the porch lights of my house appear in my vision. "Almost there," I say. He nods, staying silent. I head up the driveway, but he waits on the sidewalk as I open the screen door and take the house key out of my pocket to unlock the front one. "So, thanks for coming back with me," I say.

"No problem at all," he calls up the driveway as I struggle with the lock. Once the door clicks open, I step inside, waving at Farland. I catch him waving back just before the door slams closed behind me.

Once I head into the kitchen, I see my mother sitting at the table. "Hey, honey," she says in a weary voice. She's in her stained white bathrobe holding a huge mug of coffee. I see red rings under her eyes, and I know she was fighting with Dad while I was gone.

"Hey, Mom." I don't ask her about her argument. I don't ask where Dad is. I just go upstairs to my room quietly, get changed, and climb into bed. The last thing I see before I fall asleep is a figure in the dark, standing at the end of my driveway, waving back at me.